Rupee at new low of 83.65 on strength in greenback

The Indian rupee weakened to a record low versus the US dollar Thursday as broad gains in the American currency globally and corporate outflows hurt the local unit, traders said. The Indian currency shed 0.2% against the dollar to settle at 83.6525/$1, a new closing low, LSEG data showed. During trade, the rupee weakened to a lifetime intraday low of 83.6650/$1.

Persistent dollar demand from importers – amplified by the rupee’s depreciation past the 83.60/$1 mark – also ensured a weaker bias for the local currency, traders said.

While the Reserve Bank of India had intervened through some dollar sales early in the day, the central bank had refrained from expending much of its reserves to curb the rupee’s depreciation on a day when most Asian currencies took a hit versus the US dollar, dealers said.

“Weakness in the Chinese Yuan kept pressure on the rupee. Chinese Yuan dropped above 7.28 levels, its weakest levels since November, 2023. Broader USD strength has been witnessed across G7 and Asian currencies. Several corporate outflows have been further adding to rupee weakness,” said Kunal Sodhani, vice-president, Shinhan Bank.